Rudder control system



July 2, 1946. ELMER AL 2,403,064

RUDDER CONTROL SYSTEM Filed 00*.- 8, 1945 WITNESSES: NZE/gl'ORS d /4 era Fa/oi 5. mm.

ATTORNEY Patented July 2, 1946 RUDDER CONTROL SYSTEM William B. Elmer, Lakewood, Ohio, and Ralph It. Rimer, Sharon, Pa., assignors to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application October 8, 1945, Serial No. 621,079

9 Claims.

1 Our invention relates to steering devices and, more particularly, to electromagnetic steering apparatus for torpedoes.

In the rudder control apparatus for electrically propelled torpedoes as heretofore in vogue, two

solenoids are used for each pair of rudders, name- 1y, one pair of solenoids for the elevator rudders and one pair of solenoids for the steering rudders.

One broad object of our invention is to simplify the construction for the rudder actuating means.

The process of treating and varnishing the torpedo shell involves dipping operations. The shell is, therefore, so constructed that no varnish will be trapped and that no air pockets are formed at any point on the shell.

The solenoid construction of the prior art required a total of four solenoids all so mounted at the tail cone that they were not readily accessible for repair in the event of leaky welds or brazes. In addition, the construction included crevices and pockets where air was easily trapped, preventing the sealing varnish from reaching all surfaces.

It is also an objector our invention to provide leakproof, simple, and accessible solenoids for operating the rudders of torpedoes. jj

A further somewhat more specific object of our invention is the provision of hard-over biasing means for each pair of rudders of a torpedo and single solenoid means for each pair'of rudders for operating the rudders against the hard-over biasing force.

A still further object of our invention is the provision of light and quiet operating means for the rudders of torpedoes.

The objects hereinbefore recited are merely illustrative. Many other objects and advantages will become more apparent from a study of the following specification when made in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the tail cone of a torpedo illustrating our invention in elevation;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of one of the rudder actuating solenoids; and

Fig. '3 is a transverse sectional view of the tail cone shown in Fig. 1, the section being on the plane designated by the section line III-III of Fig. 1.

In the drawing, l designates the afterbody of a torpedo and 2 the tail cone portion of the torpedo, the two portions being hermetically separated by the bulkhead 3. For the construction,

we have shown, the region selected to the right of the bulkhead 3 may be comparatively small 65 spring tensionldpe nbt lt r greatly dulilflgl'lldzz" and the designation of art because the usualdesignation may include the portion 1 as the tail cone. However, welshall for the purpose of the discussion herein adhere to the designation'first mentioned i n]-this para aph. 1.,

Mounted onaligned bearings 4 and. 5 and '6 and 1 are the steering rudders 8 and 9. I The elevatmg rudders generally designated by Ill are mounted on similarly aligned bearings as H and i2. "The inner or adjacent ends of the rudders 8 .and 9 are secured to the rudder actuating yoke l3, and

the inneror adjacent ends of the elevating rud-, ders ID are secured to the operating, yoke l4. These yokes have arcuatemid-regions to, clear the propulsion shaftl5 without in any wise interfering in their operation with the propulsion shaft nor'to have this propulsionshaft interfere with the'actuation ofthefrudder operating yokes l3fandil4f 'f "11,; f'

The torpedoes areprovidedwiththe conven tionfal vertical stabilizing fins l'l and-l8 and horizontal s ab zi fins l9 jand'zo, j L

Instead of housing two separate solenoidsfor operating each of the associated pair of rudders, we utilize springs for biasing the rudders to one extreme operating position and utilize a single solenoid for each pair of rudders for operating the rudders to an opposite extreme position. -ll's shown in Figs. 1 and 3, spring 2! is secured to a relatively short operating arm 22 on the yoke v l3 and this spring 2| has its other or forward end hooked into the eye of a bolt 23 fitted into a nut 24 welded to the bulkhead 3.- "I'h'e bolt 23 being threaded into the nut 24 gives some adiustment to the tension of spring 2|. Spring 2 I,is

a relatively long stiff spring and is selected to have an actuating force on the steering rudders 8 and 9 sufiicient to throw these hard-over to one extreme position and hold the rudders in that position even at the rated speed of the torpedo,

predetermined restoring force on the rudders.

torpedo in operation wouldmoveabout in a circle.

Theactuating arm 22' is'selected to be rela-. tively short and is so attached to the yoke 13;

as to lean somewhat in the aft direction, when the" rudders are not materially deflected in. either direction. ]The spring is relatively strong and long, and .sincethe arm 22 is short the,

l as the afterbody, and 2 as the tail cone .may not be instrict accordance with the usual designation of the parts inthe.

der operation. The change in moment arm resulting from rudder motion compensates for the collateral change in spring tension, resulting in approximately uniform spring-applied moment to the rudder yoke.

The yoke I3 is provided with an arm 25, to which arm i connected the c'levis 26 of the link connecting to the armature of the operating solenoid. The function of the operating solenoid is exactly like the function of the operating solenoid for the elevating rudders and this function will become presently apparent from a discussion of the control of the elevator rudders. A spring 3| has its forward end secured to a structure similar to the elements 23 and 24 also secured to the bulkhead 3 and has its aft end hooked into the operating arm 32 connected to the yoke I4 of the elevating rudders. This arm 32 is also relatively short and leans somewhat in the aft direction, so that the spring movement will not materially alter the effective turning moment applied to the yoke. Spring3l is also relatively long and rather stiff and will actuate the elevating rudders in the absence of any other actuating force'to be deflected upwardly to an extreme position for the rated speed of the torpedo; "That is, for the rated speed of the torpedo, the force of the water will not tend to move the rudders in the position shown, but the rudders will be deflected "in a counterclockwise direction to the extreme position of their movement. The yoke 14 has a crank arm 33 projecting in an opposite direction from the direction of projection of the arm 32 and to the lower end of crank arm 33' we secure the clevis of the link 34 interconnecting the elevating rudders ID with" the plunger-like armature 35 for electromagnetica-lly operating the rudders. This armature 35 is arranged to be adjustable longitudinally of the link 34 to provide the mosteffective'actuationof the rudders and, as shown, projects through a circular opening 36 in the'bulkhead 3. A tube 3-! is brazed or welded at"38 to the bulkhead 3 over the opening 36 so that the plunger-like armature 35 'in'its longitudinal movement moves axially of the opening 36 in the-tube 31.

In operation, the tail cone portion of the torpedo is exposed to the sea water, yet it is quite important that no sea water enter the afterbody. To this end, it is quite important that the brazing operation at 38 be leakproof and that the left end or forward end of the tube 31 be sealed against leakage of sea water to the left of the bulkhead '3. The tube 31 is, therefore, provided with a closure 38 having a threaded drain hole 39 disposed axially thereof, the threads being provided to receive the threadedplug 40 for closing all communication between the interior of the tube and the region to the left of the tube.

Disposed over the tube 31 is the solenoid coil H which is so wound that it fits rather snugly over the tube 31-, but may nevertheless be readily slipped off toward the left for repair or inspection when such repair or inspection may become necessary.

To protect the solenoid coil 4|, and to complete the magnetic circuit, we provide the can 42 which, by means of a bolt 43 threaded into the plug '40, is rigidly held over the solenoid coil 4| and yet provides no stresses on the brazed joint 38 by reason of the attachment, other than the mere weight of the coil and can. The can is provided with a relatively narrow slot 44 4 through which the leads 45 and 46 project for connection of the solenoid coil to the battery B through the control switch S.

To effect quiet operation of the steering control elements, we provide the end of the plungerlike armature 35 projecting into the tube 3'! with a resilient buffer 41. This buffer or' pad is so shaped that in its action when the plunger 35 moves toward the left it will engage the closure 38 quietly. To assure that it does not become dislodged the end of the plunger 35 is so shaped to receive the enlargement at the right of the resilient buffer and thus permanently retain the butter. The material for this noise eliminating pad may be either rubber, neoprene, some type of plastic, or even a fiber that is not likely to deteriorate toorapidly.

It is apparent that during the normal operation of a torpedo with gyroscopic or acoustic control devices, the rudders 8 and 9 are controlled and in a somewhat similar manner the devices responsive to depths and the 'di reetionof travel of the torpedo with referenceto-the' horizonw'ill determine the position- 0f the elevating rudders 10. As shown i-n-Fig-j 1, the battery Biscon nected to the solenoid-4i through the operation of a relay R which, in turn; is energized'by'a control switch '5. If, as shown in Figk l; the solenoid 4| is the particular solenoid for operating the elevating rudders; then-the control switch's is a switch'lioperate'd if-rom' a device that is responsive to the depthof the torpedo and to the direction of travel or the torpedo with reference to the horizon. i i

If the torpedo is sufiicient-ly small; requiring light duty solenoid coils, it may not benecessary to utilize the relay but the solenoid may be connected directly to the battery'by the control switch, as shown in Fig 2.' v

From the foregoing I scussi'on, it'will be readily apparent *that'the coi ,ifm'ayfbe' readilyfre moved for inspection'andrepair and the tube}? may be inspectedin the event of leakagewith out in any wise dismantling many elements but merely by the removal"ofrthetcitmana the can42.

Usually, there is a slight bulge'in 'the'solenoid coil at the region wherethe lea,ds,a1"e taken out, Our construction of the can permits some'slight eccentric mounting of the can with reference to the solenoid coil and, therefore, does not interfere with the proper position on the solenoid. 31 nor the proper position of the can 42 on the solenoid.

The elimination of two. extrasolenoids and the consequent reductions in. length and weight of the actuating elements .for the rudders makes the rudder action more speedy and to respond more accurately tov the control of the solenoids. ther, since only two solenoidsare used, both of them are mounted in the lower portion of 'the afterbody, thereby increasing the stability ofthe torpedo since the center of gravity is thus lowered in comparison with the older et-solenoid designs. Further, an important advantage we .secure by our construction is that the up-elevator position 'is automatically obtained at the end of an exercise run when the controls for the propulsion equipment and other electrical circuits are all disconnected from the battery, in the torpedo. By merely de-energizing thesolenoid co'ilslfor the rudders, the springs. automatically deflect the elevating rudders in a counterclockwise direction tion with the result that the torpedo at 'the'end Fur- -of an exercise run and stopped its movement in the water ;will surface.

before it has actually While we have shown one embodiment .ofqour invention, it is readily apparent that others, particularly after having had the benefit of the teachings of our invention, may devise somewhat similar schemes for the similar purposes. -We, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the particular disclosure herein made but wish to be limited only by the scope of the claims hereto appended.

We claim as our invention:

1. In means for operating a pair ofruddersfor a conveyance moving through a fluid medium, in

combination, a conveyance having a tail strucv ture, a pair of rudders, bearings in the tail structure for the rudders, the bearings and thus the rudders being so disposed transversely of the longitudinal direction of the conveyance, a rudder actuating element coupled to the rudders, a relatively short crank arm projecting from the element, a relatively long spring at one end attached to the crank arm and at its other end secured to the tail structure, whereby the rudders are biased hard-over to one side of the conveyance and whereby movement of the rudders from one hard-over position to the other hard-over position does not aifect appreciable change in the spring moment on the crank arm, a second crank arm disposed in the opposite direction, and a single solenoid operatively coupled to the second crank arm for operating the rudders in opposition to the biasing force of the spring.

2. In combination with the conventional construction mounting and operating yoke for the rudders of a torpedo, a relatively short crank arm coupled to the yoke and projecting transverse of the torpedo axis and at an angle to a plane normal to the torpedo axis corresponding to one hard-over position of the rudders, a relatively long strong spring under a given tension having one end coupled to the crank arm and the other end coupled to the torpedo structure, whereby the rudders are actuated by the spring to their other hard-over position, a solenoid, an armature for the solenoid, a second crank arm coupled to the yoke and projecting in the opposite direction, and connecting means between the armature and second crank arm to actuate the rudders in opposition to said spring.

3. In combination with a craft in operation moving through a fluid medium, a pair of rudders pivotally disposed in aligned bearings in the aft region of the craft, a rudder actuating yoke mechanically coupled to the inner adjacent ends of the rudder shafts, a spring, a spring actuated crank arm coupled to the yoke, a solenoid, an armature for the solenoid, an armature actuated crank arm on the yoke projecting from the yoke substantially in the opposite direction to the direction of projection of the spring actuated crank arm, and means for connecting one end of the spring under tension to the craft frame and the other end to the spring actuated crank arm whereby the rudders are actuated to one hardover position by the spring, said solenoid when energized being strong enough to overcome the force of the spring to thus actuate the rudders to the other hard-over position.

4. In a device for actuating either of a pair of rudders, as the elevating rudders or the steering rudders, of a torpedo, in combination, a yoke connected to the adjacent ends of the rudder shafts, a crank arm on the yoke and projecting from the yoke substantially at right angles of the rudder shafts, a spring,,a torpedo. bulkheadfbetween-the, torpedo afterbody. and the tail cone, ,saidspring ,under tension having one end secured to the bulkhead and the other end secured, to thel crank arm to thus actuate the ruddersto. one hard-over position, a second crankarmon-the yoke projecting in anopposite direction, alink, a plunger-like armature; said, link interconnect.- ingthe; armature andv second crank ar .said armature projecting through an opening. in the bulkhead to be in partat; ,thefafterbody side of the bulkhead, a solenoid in, the .afterbodysurroundingthe. armature, a solenoid housing, :said solenoidhousing being mounted against the bulk- .head to, prevent leakage of sea water from-the tail cone into the afterbody.

5. Incontrol means for use with the control rudders, of a torpedo, in combination, -.a torpedo bulkhead havingan opening, a tube at oneend hermeticallysealed to the bulkhead over the .openingaclosure for, the other end ofthe tube, ;a.. o1eno id coiladisposed .over, the tube, a can-for covering; the coil, means. forattaching the can .to the; said closure, -means .for energizing:v the solenoid under selected. conditions of -o lation of the torpedo,- an, armature: disposed into. the tube through theopening inv therbulkhead, means for interconnecting the torpedo rudders and the v armature to cause operation of the rudders'in one direction, and spring means for biasing the rudders in another direction when the solenoid coil is de-energized.

6. In control means for use with the control rudders of a torpedo, in combination, a torpedo bulkhead having an opening, a tube at one end into the tube secured to the bulkhead over the opening, a cushioning element secured to the end of the plunger projecting into the tube to thus cushion the input of the plunger on the closure upon actuation of the plunger by the energization of the solenoid coil, means for connecting the armature to the rudders for operating the rudders to one position upon energization of the solenoid coil, and'spring means for operating the rudders toan opposite position upon de-energization of the solenoid coil.

7. In control means for use with the control rudders of a torpedo, in combination, atorpedo bulkhead having an opening, a tube at one end hermetically sealed to the bulkhead over the opening, a closure for the other end of the tube, a solenoid coil disposed over the tube, a can for covering the coil, means for attaching the can to the said closure, means for energizing the solenoid under selected conditions of operation of the torpedo, an armature plunger projecting through the bulkhead opening into the tube, a

rubber-like end pad secured to the armature tively connected to the actuating yokes for the 7 rudders to thus actuate the rudders to one position by a force greater than the force of the water on the rudders for the rated torpedo speed,

7 and means for operatively connecting the plunger to the rudders to actuate the rudders to theopposite position upon energ-iza'tion of the solenoid coil.

8. In control means for use with the control rudders of a torpedo, in combination, a torpedo bulkhead having an opening, a tube at one end hermetically sealed :to the bulkhead over the opening, a closure for the other end of the tube, a solenoid coil disposed over the tube, a can for covering the coil, means for attaching the can to the said closure, means for energizing the solenoid under selected conditions of operation of the torpedo, said closure having a drain opening therein, a plug in the-drain opening to hermetically seal the projecting end of the tube, an armature plunger projecting through the bulkhead opening into the tube, a rubber-like end pad secured to the plunger at the end projecting into the tube, spring means for biasing the rudders to one extreme position by a force greater than the force of the water on the rudders at the rated torpedo speed, and means for connecting the plunger to the rudders to actuate the rudders to the opposite extreme position by a force greater than the spring force and the force of the water on the rudders at rated torpedo speed.

9. In control means for use with the control rudders of a torpedo, in combination, a torpedo bulkhead having an opening, a tube at one end hermetically sealed to the bulk-head over the opening, a closure for the other end of the tube, a solenoid coil disposed over the tube, a can for covering the coil, means for attaching the can to the said closure, means for'ener-gizing thesolenoid under selected conditions of operation of the torpedo, said closure having a drain opening therein, a plug in the drain opening to hermetically seal the projecting end of the tube, an armature plunger projecting through the bulkhead opening into the tube, spring means for biasing the rudders to one extreme position by a force greater than the force of the water on the rudders at the ratedtorpedo speed, and means for connecting the plunger to the rudders to actuate the rudders to the opposite extreme position by a force greater than the spring force-and the forceof the wateron the rudders at rated torpedo speed.

RALPH R. RIMER. 

